BBC star draws SA parallels and laughs in world tour show
YOU could see on his face that South London comedian Steven K Amos could not quite believe how receptive his South African audience was to his abrasive attack on sacred South African cows. So he gave it to them. Car guards in Grahamstown’s High Street were given the jibe: “I can drive! I can park my own ***** car!”. And how can we call Grahamstown a city just because it has a cathedral: “It’s a village, man!” Even the Pick n Pay was not spared: “You pick, you pay, you don’t pick and run away. WTF!”
Four hundred festinoes filled the front rows of the Guy Butler theatre, while Amos cut into racial stereotypes, played with thick London and Nigerian accents, and delivered some in-depth education on sex, being black and gay.
His best laughs came from lampooning the British royals, especially Prince Philip, whom he said seemed to pop up everywhere, and “will just never die”.
It’s a full one-hour 45-minute show, with an interval, for which the BBC star, who is on a world tour, received a standing ovation.
Across the valley at the Standard Bank Jazz Festival, contemporary acoustic guitar maestro Guy Buttery delved into the world of jazz with 2014 Sama winner for jazz, bassist Shane Cooper, and sharp, hipster percussionist Ronan Skillen.
Buttery’s beautiful soundscape, unique and organic rhythm and pressure-point notes felt too aural and drifty to jiggle the hips and get the toes tapping. He needs to get off the chair and pop a few jazz moves all of his own.
If Dan Patlansky can shift from a wooden body presence on stage to vein-popping, shirt open, face-warped, rocking banshee, maybe Buttery could bring a bit of body performance beyond flicking his admittedly gorgeous straight-shiny locks from getting in the way of his magical fingers.
The audience loved the show but I don’t think Buttery has quite got it yet. Maybe if he found just one or two Afro-blues notes to work into his compositions we could cross over with him. Sorry, maestro.
Catch Guy Buttery at the Graham Hotel daily until Friday, and at the Thomas Pringle Hall on Saturday. Stephen K Amos’s shows have ended.